Measurement objects in a new radio (nr) system

ABSTRACT

Technology for a user equipment (UE) operable to perform measurements for measurement objects (MOs) in a New Radio (NR) system is disclosed. The UE can identify an MO configured by an NR network in the NR system, wherein the MO is associated with a synchronization signal block (SSB) of a frequency. The UE can measure the MO associated with the SSB for the frequency. The UE can encode a measurement report for transmission to the NR network, wherein the measurement report includes one or more measurements associated with the MO.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 16/373,065 filed Apr. 2, 2019 with a docket number of AC0033.USwhich claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No.62/651,446 filed Apr. 2, 2018 and U.S. Provisional Patent ApplicationNo. 62/658,518 filed Apr. 16, 2018, the entire specifications of whichare hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety for all purposes.

BACKGROUND

Wireless systems typically include multiple User Equipment (UE) devicescommunicatively coupled to one or more Base Stations (BS). The one ormore BSs may be Long Term Evolved (LTE) evolved NodeBs (eNB) or NewRadio (NR) next generation NodeBs (gNB) that can be communicativelycoupled to one or more UEs by a Third-Generation Partnership Project(3GPP) network.

Next generation wireless communication systems are expected to be aunified network/system that is targeted to meet vastly different andsometimes conflicting performance dimensions and services. New RadioAccess Technology (RAT) is expected to support a broad range of usecases including Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB), Massive Machine TypeCommunication (mMTC), Mission Critical Machine Type Communication(uMTC), and similar service types operating in frequency ranges up to100 GHz.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Features and advantages of the disclosure will be apparent from thedetailed description which follows, taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings, which together illustrate, by way of example,features of the disclosure; and, wherein:

FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of a Third-Generation PartnershipProject (3GPP) New Radio (NR) Release 15 frame structure in accordancewith an example;

FIG. 2 is Abstract Syntax Notation One (ASN.1) code that shows an SSBfor timing cell ID (ssbForTimingCellID) parameter included in a CSI-RSCell Mobility (CSI-RS-CellMobility) information element (IE) inaccordance with an example;

FIG. 3 illustrates multiple measurement objects (MOs) for a servingfrequency and a non-serving frequency in accordance with an example;

FIG. 4 depicts functionality of a user equipment (UE) operable toperform measurements for measurement objects (MOs) in a New Radio (NR)system in accordance with an example;

FIG. 5 depicts functionality of a New Radio (NR) network operable todecode measurements for measurement objects (MOs) received from a userequipment (UE) in accordance with an example;

FIG. 6 depicts a flowchart of a machine readable storage medium havinginstructions embodied thereon for performing measurements formeasurement objects (MOs) in a New Radio (NR) system in accordance withan example;

FIG. 7 illustrates an architecture of a wireless network in accordancewith an example;

FIG. 8 illustrates a diagram of a wireless device (e.g., UE) inaccordance with an example;

FIG. 9 illustrates interfaces of baseband circuitry in accordance withan example; and

FIG. 10 illustrates a diagram of a wireless device (e.g., UE) inaccordance with an example.

Reference will now be made to the exemplary embodiments illustrated, andspecific language will be used herein to describe the same. It willnevertheless be understood that no limitation of the scope of thetechnology is thereby intended.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Before the present technology is disclosed and described, it is to beunderstood that this technology is not limited to the particularstructures, process actions, or materials disclosed herein, but isextended to equivalents thereof as would be recognized by thoseordinarily skilled in the relevant arts. It should also be understoodthat terminology employed herein is used for the purpose of describingparticular examples only and is not intended to be limiting. The samereference numerals in different drawings represent the same element.Numbers provided in flow charts and processes are provided for clarityin illustrating actions and operations and do not necessarily indicate aparticular order or sequence.

Definitions

As used herein, the term “User Equipment (UE)” refers to a computingdevice capable of wireless digital communication such as a smart phone,a tablet computing device, a laptop computer, a multimedia device suchas an iPod Touch®, or other type computing device that provides text orvoice communication. The term “User Equipment (UE)” may also be referredto as a “mobile device,” “wireless device,” of “wireless mobile device.”

As used herein, the term “Base Station (BS)” includes “Base TransceiverStations (BTS),” “NodeBs,” “evolved NodeBs (eNodeB or eNB),” “New RadioBase Stations (NR BS) and/or “next generation NodeBs (gNodeB or gNB),”and refers to a device or configured node of a mobile phone network thatcommunicates wirelessly with UEs.

As used herein, the term “cellular telephone network,” “4G cellular,”“Long Term Evolved (LTE),” “5G cellular” and/or “New Radio (NR)” refersto wireless broadband technology developed by the Third GenerationPartnership Project (3GPP).

Example Embodiments

An initial overview of technology embodiments is provided below and thenspecific technology embodiments are described in further detail later.This initial summary is intended to aid readers in understanding thetechnology more quickly but is not intended to identify key features oressential features of the technology nor is it intended to limit thescope of the claimed subject matter.

FIG. 1 provides an example of a 3GPP NR Release 15 frame structure. Inparticular, FIG. 1 illustrates a downlink radio frame structure. In theexample, a radio frame 100 of a signal used to transmit the data can beconfigured to have a duration, T_(f), of 10 milliseconds (ms). Eachradio frame can be segmented or divided into ten subframes 110 i thatare each 1 ms long. Each subframe can be further subdivided into one ormultiple slots 120 a, 120 i, and 120 x, each with a duration, T_(slot),of 1/μms, where μ=1 for 15 kHz subcarrier spacing, μ=2 for 30 kHz, μ=4for 60 kHz, μ=8 for 120 kHz, and u=16 for 240 kHz. Each slot can includea physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) and/or a physical downlinkshared channel (PDSCH).

Each slot for a component carrier (CC) used by the node and the wirelessdevice can include multiple resource blocks (RBs) 130 a, 130 b, 130 i,130 m, and 130 n based on the CC frequency bandwidth. The CC can have acarrier frequency having a bandwidth. Each slot of the CC can includedownlink control information (DCI) found in the PDCCH. The PDCCH istransmitted in control channel resource set (CORESET) which can includeone, two or three Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM)symbols and multiple RBs.

Each RB (physical RB or PRB) can include 12 subcarriers (on thefrequency axis) and 14 orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM)symbols (on the time axis) per slot. The RB can use 14 OFDM symbols if ashort or normal cyclic prefix is employed. The RB can use 12 OFDMsymbols if an extended cyclic prefix is used. The resource block can bemapped to 168 resource elements (REs) using short or normal cyclicprefixing, or the resource block can be mapped to 144 REs (not shown)using extended cyclic prefixing. The RE can be a unit of one OFDM symbol142 by one subcarrier (i.e., 15 kHz, 30 kHz, 60 kHz, 120 kHz, and 240kHz) 146.

Each RE 140 i can transmit two bits 150 a and 150 b of information inthe case of quadrature phase-shift keying (QPSK) modulation. Other typesof modulation may be used, such as 16 quadrature amplitude modulation(QAM) or 64 QAM to transmit a greater number of bits in each RE, orbi-phase shift keying (BPSK) modulation to transmit a lesser number ofbits (a single bit) in each RE. The RB can be configured for a downlinktransmission from the eNodeB to the UE, or the RB can be configured foran uplink transmission from the UE to the eNodeB.

This example of the 3GPP NR Release 15 frame structure provides examplesof the way in which data is transmitted, or the transmission mode. Theexample is not intended to be limiting. Many of the Release 15 featureswill evolve and change in the 5G frame structures included in 3GPP LTERelease 15, MulteFire Release 1.1, and beyond. In such a system, thedesign constraint can be on co-existence with multiple 5G numerologiesin the same carrier due to the coexistence of different networkservices, such as eMBB (enhanced Mobile Broadband), mMTC (massiveMachine Type Communications or massive IoT) and URLLC (Ultra ReliableLow Latency Communications or Critical Communications). The carrier in a5G system can be above or below 6 GHz. In one embodiment, each networkservice can have a different numerology.

Measurement Reporting in NR System

In the current NR handover scenario, a UE can perform a measurementbased on a synchronization signal block (SSB) or a channel stateinformation reference signal (CSI-RS) of neighboring cells based on anetwork configuration. The UE can perform a linear average of the N bestbeams of each cell to evaluate a cell level quality, wherein N is apositive integer. In this case, a “best” beam can refer to a beamassociated with an increased signal quality (based on the SSB and/orCSI-RS) in relation to other beams of the cell. Then, a network canconfigure the UE to include a beam measurement in a measurement reportto assist with a random access channel (RACH) configuration.

In NR, the cells included in the measurement report can only containtriggered cells, as in LTE systems. In the NR system, a beam is a newdimension element that is not included in LTE systems. Therefore, insome cases for NR, the cell quality level may not necessarily indicatecells that contain the best beams. In this case, the UE can trigger ameasurement report based on a cell that has a favorable cell levelquality but only an average beam quality, where the cell having a fewfavorable beams may not be triggered due to the cell's average celllevel quality not reaching a triggering point. Here, a “favorable” or“good” beam can refer to a beam associated with an increased signalquality (based on the SSB and/or CSI-RS) in relation to other beams, ora beam having a signal quality that is above a defined threshold. In oneexample, the network cannot choose the UE to handover to that cell sincethe cell is not a triggered cell. Therefore, the measurement report maynot contain that cell.

As described in further detail below, cells containing favorable beamscan be included in the measurement report. In other words, themeasurement report can include cells with favorable beams, even when thecells are not triggered.

In a first configuration, the measurement report can include cells thathave K favorable beams above a defined threshold, wherein K is apositive integer. In this example, K and/or the defined threshold can beconfigured by the network, or K and/or the defined threshold can befixed. In one example, the defined threshold can be based on a referencesignal receive power (RSRP), a reference signal received quality (RSRQ)and/or a signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR). In addition, abeam level measurement can be Layer 1 (L1) or Layer 3 (L3) filtered.

In a second configuration, the measurement report can include a top Mcells that have a highest number of beams measured above a definedthreshold, wherein M is a positive integer. In this example, M can beconfigured by the network, and M may or may not count the cells alreadytriggered. Here, the cells can refer to cells that are not alreadytriggered. The defined threshold can be configured by the network, orthe defined threshold can be fixed. The defined threshold can be basedon a RSRP, RSRQ and/or SINR. In addition, a beam level measurement canbe L1 or L3 filtered.

As a non-limiting example, cell 1 can have 5 favorable beams above thedefined threshold, cell 2 can have 2 favorable beams above the definedthreshold, cell 3 can have 10 favorable beams above the definedthreshold, cell 4 can have 1 favorable beam above the defined threshold,cell 5 can have 6 favorable beams above the defined threshold, and cell6 can have no favorable beams above the defined threshold. In thisexample, cell 1 can be the triggered cell and no other cells can betriggered at this point. When the first configuration is used, if K isequal to 4, then the UE can include cell 1, cell 3 and cell 5 in themeasurement report. When the second configuration is used, if M is equalto 2, then the UE can include cell 3 and cell 5 in the measurementreport. In addition, the measurement report can also include the beammeasurement of non-triggered cells.

Measurement Objects in NR System

With respect to measurement objects (MOs) in an NR system, in oneexample, there can be one NR Absolute Radio Frequency Channel Number(NR-ARFCN) per MO. In general, an MO can include a list of cells (andtheir frequencies of operation) on which measurements are to beperformed. In another example, for measurements of a carrier where asynchronization signal block (SSB) is not present (e.g., measurementsare performed based on a channel state information reference signal(CSI-RS)), the MO can include CSI-RS resources for Layer 3 (L3) mobilitymeasurements, and the MO can include an indication that no SSB isprovided on the carrier. In addition, the UE can acquire timingreferences for making measurements for the carrier. For example, the UEcan assume a timing reference from one of its serving carriers (in acarrier aggregation scenario), or the MO can include a pointer toanother carrier with an SSB for obtaining the timing reference. In yetanother example, for measurements of carrier where an SSB is present,when the SSB is not located in a center of the carrier, an offset to theARFCN can provide a location in frequency of the SSB within the carrier.In one example, the MO can have only one SSB, or alternatively, the MOcan include the location of more than one SSB. In addition, the aboveexamples relate to a single bandwidth part (BWP), in which case the NRARFCN can be at the center of the BWP, or the above examples relate tomultiple BWPs.

In one example, with respect to MOs in the NR system, an SSB subcarrierspacing can be configured in the MO. In addition, an SSB configurationused for a timing reference can be provided in the MO where only aCSI-RS based radio resource management (RRM) measurement is performed.

In one example, a UE can determine which MO corresponds to a servingfrequency (or a non-serving frequency) from a frequency location of acell-defining SSB (CD-SSB) that is contained within a serving cellconfiguration. In another example, more than one MO with CSI-RSresources for measurement can be associated to a same SSB location infrequency, and the SSB can be at least used for timing reference. In yetanother example, when more than one MO with CSI-RS resources formeasurement is associated to the same SSB location in frequency, the UEcan receive an indication regarding which MO corresponds to the servingcarrier. The indication can be included in the MO or in the serving cellconfiguration.

In one example, a BWP operation can have an impact on a CONNECTED mode,as well as on idle/inactive mode UEs. In one example, radio resourcecontrol (RRC) signaling can be used to configure one or more BWPs (e.g.,both for DL BWP and UL BWP) for a serving cell, such as a primary cell(PCell) or a primary secondary cell (PSCell). In one example, RRCsignaling can be used to configure zero, one or more BWPs (both for DLBWP and UL BWP) for a serving cell, such as a secondary cell (SCell) (atleast one DL BWP), which can be impacted by a supplementary uplink(SUL). In one example, for a UE, the PCell, the PSCell and each SCellcan each have a single associated SSB in frequency, which can bereferred to as an CD-SSB. In one example, a cell defining SS block canbe changed by a synchronous reconfiguration for the PCell/PSCell and aSCell release/add for the SCell. In one example, each SS block frequencyto be measured by the UE can be configured as an individual measurementobject (i.e., one measurement object can correspond to a single SS blockfrequency). In one example, a cell defining SS block can be consideredas a time reference of the serving cell, and for RRM serving cellmeasurements based on an SSB (irrespective of which BWP is activated).

In one example, within an MO, an SSB location can be indicated with aglobal synchronization channel number (GSCN) with no additional offset,and in some cases, a subcarrier offset as well. In one example, for anMO with a CSI-RS, an NR-ARFCN can be used to indicate a frequencyreference, where a location of the CSI-RS can be relative to frequencyreference. In one example, an SSB location can be indicated with theGSCN for a reconfiguration with sync (e.g., for inter-frequency handoverand a secondary cell group (SCG) change) and for configuration ofSCells. The reconfiguration can also provide an NR-ARFCN, and in somecases, a subcarrier offset as well. In another example, foridle/inactive reselection and reselection from LTE to NR, the SSBlocation can be indicated with a GSCN with no additional offset.

As described in further detail below, a UE behavior can be defined whenmultiple measurement objects (MOs) are configured on a same carrierfrequency. The MOs can be configured using RRC signaling.

In one configuration, there can be three types of synchronization signalblocks (SSBs) in the measurement object (MMO) in an NR system. A firsttype (Type 1) can be a cell defining SSB in a MO. In the first type, theUE can use the cell defining SSB as a timing reference for a CSI-RS whenconfigured for a same cell identifier (ID). A second type (Type 2) canbe an SSB for timing reference in a MO for a CSI-RS measurement. In thesecond type, when a CSI-RS is configured and no corresponding celldefining SSB is configured, a network can configure an SSB (of anothercell) as a timing reference for the CSI-RS. In this case, which SSB isconfigured for this purpose may not be provided in an informationelement (IE). A third type (Type 3) can be no SSB in a MO. When no SSBis in the MO, the UE can reuse a serving cell for a timing reference.However, the UE can have multiple serving cells, and one of the servingcells can be used by the UE for the CSI-RS timing reference whenconfigured.

In one example, for the second type and the third type, previoussolutions do not specify which SSB is to be used by the UE for a timingreference when a cell defining SSB for a same cell ID as the CSI-RS isnot provided. Therefore, for the second type and the third type, an SSBfor timing cell iD (ssbForTimingCellID) parameter can be included in aCSI-RS Cell Mobility (CSI-RS-CellMobility) information element (IE),which can indicate to a UE a particular SSB to be used for the timingreference.

FIG. 2 is an example of Abstract Syntax Notation One (ASN.1) code thatshows an SSB for timing cell ID (ssbForTimingCellID) parameter includedin a CSI-RS Cell Mobility (CSI-RS-CellMobility) information element(IE). The ssbForTimingCellID parameter can be included in theCSI-RS-CellMobility IE to indicate to a UE a particular SSB to be usedfor a timing reference. In particular, the ssbForTimingCellID parametercan be included in the CSI-RS-CellMobility IE for a second type (Type 2)of SSB and a third type (Type 3) of SSB. In addition, thessbForTimingCellID can be associated with a physical cell ID(PhysCellId).

In one example, multiple MOs can be configured for a same carrierfrequency. There are several use cases for allowing multiple MOs to beconfigured on the same carrier frequency. For example, in a firstscenario, there can be an SSB on different BWPs so a UE does not have toperform intra-frequency measurements with a measurement gap. In general,the measurement gap is a period of time during which the UE does nottransmit or receive signals, but rather performs signal qualitymeasurements. For example, a first MO (MO1) and a second MO (MO2) can beconfigured and an SSB can be measured within a first BWP (BWP1) and asecond BWP (BWP2). In a second scenario, there can be multiple CSI-RSconfigurations on a different narrower carrier within a non-servingfrequency. In a third scenario, there can be multiple CSI-RSconfigurations within a same BWP.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example of multiple measurement objects (MOs) fora serving frequency and a non-serving frequency. For example, a first MO(MO1) and a second MO (MO2) can include an SSB configuration for a firstBWP (BWP1) and a third BWP (BWP3), respectively, which can allow a UE tomeasure a serving cell without a measurement gap. For example, when BWP1is active, the UE can perform a measurement using MO1. When the networkswitches the UE to BWP3, the UE can perform a measurement using MO2without a measurement gap. However, if BWP2 is active and there is noSSB on BWP2, the UE can measure the serving cell using a measurementgap.

However, in previous solutions, if the network configures twomeasurement objects on each BWP, the UE can measure both measurementobjects. In this case, the purpose of having the UE perform themeasurement with the measurement gap cannot be achieved. Therefore, inthe current solution, the UE may not measure the measurement object onnon-active BWP if there is a measurement object on a current active BWP.In case the UE is to perform a measurement on all MOs, then there is noreason to configure multiple MO in the first scenario (i.e., when thereis an SSB on different BWPs so a UE does not have to performintra-frequency measurements with a measurement gap).

As shown in FIG. 3, when BWP1 is active, MO1 can be active and MO2 canbe disabled. When BWP2 is active, the UE can perform a measurement usingeither MO1 or MO2. When BWP3 is active, MO2 can be active and MO1 can bedisabled. Here, BWP1, BWP2 and BWP3 can be associated with a firstserving cell (Serving cell 1), and MO1 and MO2 can be associated with afirst report configuration (ReportConfig1). In addition, a third MO(MO3) and a fourth MO 9MO4) can be treated as being on a differentfrequency layer (e.g., a non-serving frequency). MO3 and MO4 can containa same cell ID, but the UE can treat MO3 and MO4 as being on differentcells (i.e., no combining of the same cell across MOs). Here, MO3 andMO4 can be associated with a second report configuration(ReportConfig2).

In one configuration, multiple SSB (and therefore multiple MOs on thesame frequency) on different BWPs can benefit the UE performing ameasurement on a serving cell using a measurement gap. For example, in afirst option, multiple MOs can be configured for multiple SSBs ondifferent BWPs on the same serving frequency and the UE can only measurean MO associated with an active BWP. In the case that there is no MOassociated to the active BWP, the UE can choose any BWP to measure forthat frequency. In a second option, only one MO can be configured for anSSB on the same serving frequency.

In one example, with respect to the second scenario (i.e., when thereare multiple CSI-RS configurations on a different narrower carrierwithin a non-serving frequency), the network can configure multipleCSI-RSs on different BWPs for a same serving frequency, which can enableswitching BWPs. However, a beam management configuration can be separatefrom radio resource management (RRM), and there can already be a CSIresource configuration (CSI-ResourceConfig) for configuration of beammanagement for this purpose. Therefore, this might not be a valid usecase.

In one configuration, with respect to the second scenario (i.e., whenthere are multiple CSI-RS configurations on a different narrower carrierwithin a non-serving frequency), the network configuring multipleCSI-RSs on different BWPs for a same serving frequency can already bedone in beam management. Therefore, this might not be a valid use case.

In one configuration, only a single MO for a CSI-RS configuration on asame serving frequency can be configured. With respect to the thirdscenario (i.e., when there are multiple CSI-RS configurations within asame BWP), the network can configure multiple CSI-RS on different BW fora non-serving frequency. For example, the network can check which BWP isbest for the UE after handover, which can be an optimization forspeeding up the handover process to the best BWP. The UE can perform acertain behavior when there are multiple MOs for the same frequency withthe same cell ID. For example, the UE can combine measurements toperform a cell measurement, or the UE can consider the presence ofdifferent carriers and hence different cells. In one example, a singleMO for a CSI-RS on a non-serving frequency can be used, or the UE canconsider different MOs as different carriers, and hence different cells(i.e., no combining of measurements for a same cell across differentMOs) in case multiple MOs are configured on the same frequency for theCSI-RS.

In one example, with respect to the third scenario (i.e., when there aremultiple CSI-RS configurations within a same BWP), the network canconfigure multiple CSI-RSs on different BWs for a non-serving frequency,which can be considered an optimization for handover purposes.

In one option, multiple MOs can be configured for multiple CSI-RSs ondifferent BWPs on a same non-serving frequency, and the UE can considereach MO as in a different carrier (i.e., same cell ID across differentMOs may not be combined). In another option, only one MO can beconfigured for a CSI-RS on a same non-serving frequency.

In one example, a 1-bit indication can be added in a CSI-RS-CellMobilityIE to indicate which SSB is used for a timing reference. In anotherexample, a carrier frequency can be added in a MO to identify the MO. Inyet another example, multiple MOs can be configured for multiple SSBs ondifferent BWPs on a same serving frequency, and a UE can only measure anMO associated to an active BWP. When there is no MO associated to theactive BWP, the UE can select a BWP to measure for that servingfrequency.

In one example, only one MO can be configured for an SSB on a samefrequency. In another example, only a single MO for a CSI-RSconfiguration on a same serving frequency can be configured. In yetanother example, multiple MOs can be configured for multiple CSI-RSs ondifferent BWPs on a same non serving frequency, and a UE can considereach MO as in a different carrier (i.e., a same cell ID across differentMOs may not be combined). In addition, only one MO can be configured fora CSI-RS on a same serving frequency.

Another example provides functionality 400 of a user equipment (UE)operable to perform measurements for measurement objects (MOs) in a NewRadio (NR) system, as shown in FIG. 4. The UE can comprise one or moreprocessors configured to identify, at the UE, an MO configured by an NRnetwork in the NR system, wherein the MO is associated with asynchronization signal block (SSB) of a frequency, as in block 410. TheUE can comprise one or more processors configured to measure, at the UE,the MO associated with the SSB for the frequency, as in block 420. TheUE can comprise one or more processors configured to encode, at the UE,a measurement report for transmission to the NR network, wherein themeasurement report includes one or more measurements associated with theMO, as in block 430. In addition, the UE can comprise a memory interfaceconfigured to send to a memory a configuration of the MO.

Another example provides functionality 500 of a New Radio (NR) networkoperable to decode measurements for measurement objects (MOs) receivedfrom a user equipment (UE), as shown in FIG. 5. The NR network cancomprise one or more processors configured to configure, at the NRnetwork, an MO for the UE, wherein the MO is associated with asynchronization signal block (SSB) of a frequency, as in block 510. TheNR network can comprise one or more processors configured to decode, atthe NR network, a measurement report received from the UE, wherein themeasurement report includes one or more measurements for the MOassociated with the SSB for the frequency, as in block 520. In addition,the NR network can comprise a memory interface configured to send to amemory the measurement report.

Another example provides at least one machine readable storage mediumhaving instructions 600 embodied thereon for performing measurements formeasurement objects (MOs) in a New Radio (NR) system, as shown in FIG.6. The instructions can be executed on a machine, where the instructionsare included on at least one computer readable medium or onenon-transitory machine readable storage medium. The instructions whenexecuted by one or more processors of a user equipment (UE) perform:identifying, at the UE, an MO configured by an NR network in the NRsystem, wherein the MO is associated with a synchronization signal block(SSB) of a frequency, as in block 610. The instructions when executed byone or more processors of the UE perform: measuring, at the UE, the MOassociated with the SSB for the frequency, as in block 620. Theinstructions when executed by one or more processors of the UE perform:encoding, at the UE, a measurement report for transmission to the NRnetwork, wherein the measurement report includes one or moremeasurements associated with the MO, as in block 630.

FIG. 7 illustrates an architecture of a system 700 of a network inaccordance with some embodiments. The system 700 is shown to include auser equipment (UE) 701 and a UE 702. The UEs 701 and 702 areillustrated as smartphones (e.g., handheld touchscreen mobile computingdevices connectable to one or more cellular networks), but may alsocomprise any mobile or non-mobile computing device, such as PersonalData Assistants (PDAs), pagers, laptop computers, desktop computers,wireless handsets, or any computing device including a wirelesscommunications interface.

In some embodiments, any of the UEs 701 and 702 can comprise an Internetof Things (IoT) UE, which can comprise a network access layer designedfor low-power IoT applications utilizing short-lived UE connections. AnIoT UE can utilize technologies such as machine-to-machine (M2M) ormachine-type communications (MTC) for exchanging data with an MTC serveror device via a public land mobile network (PLMN), Proximity-BasedService (ProSe) or device-to-device (D2D) communication, sensornetworks, or IoT networks. The M2M or MTC exchange of data may be amachine-initiated exchange of data. An IoT network describesinterconnecting IoT UEs, which may include uniquely identifiableembedded computing devices (within the Internet infrastructure), withshort-lived connections. The IoT UEs may execute background applications(e.g., keep-alive messages, status updates, etc.) to facilitate theconnections of the IoT network.

The UEs 701 and 702 may be configured to connect, e.g., communicativelycouple, with a radio access network (RAN) 710—the RAN 710 may be, forexample, an Evolved Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS)Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN), a NextGen RAN (NG RAN), orsome other type of RAN. The UEs 701 and 702 utilize connections 703 and704, respectively, each of which comprises a physical communicationsinterface or layer (discussed in further detail below); in this example,the connections 703 and 704 are illustrated as an air interface toenable communicative coupling, and can be consistent with cellularcommunications protocols, such as a Global System for MobileCommunications (GSM) protocol, a code-division multiple access (CDMA)network protocol, a Push-to-Talk (PTT) protocol, a PTT over Cellular(POC) protocol, a Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS)protocol, a 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE) protocol, a fifth generation(5G) protocol, a New Radio (NR) protocol, and the like.

In this embodiment, the UEs 701 and 702 may further directly exchangecommunication data via a ProSe interface 705. The ProSe interface 705may alternatively be referred to as a sidelink interface comprising oneor more logical channels, including but not limited to a PhysicalSidelink Control Channel (PSCCH), a Physical Sidelink Shared Channel(PSSCH), a Physical Sidelink Discovery Channel (PSDCH), and a PhysicalSidelink Broadcast Channel (PSBCH).

The UE 702 is shown to be configured to access an access point (AP) 706via connection 707. The connection 707 can comprise a local wirelessconnection, such as a connection consistent with any IEEE 802.15protocol, wherein the AP 706 would comprise a wireless fidelity (WiFi®)router. In this example, the AP 706 is shown to be connected to theInternet without connecting to the core network of the wireless system(described in further detail below).

The RAN 710 can include one or more access nodes that enable theconnections 703 and 704. These access nodes (ANs) can be referred to asbase stations (BSs), NodeBs, evolved NodeBs (eNBs), next GenerationNodeBs (gNB), RAN nodes, and so forth, and can comprise ground stations(e.g., terrestrial access points) or satellite stations providingcoverage within a geographic area (e.g., a cell). The RAN 710 mayinclude one or more RAN nodes for providing macrocells, e.g., macro RANnode 711, and one or more RAN nodes for providing femtocells orpicocells (e.g., cells having smaller coverage areas, smaller usercapacity, or higher bandwidth compared to macrocells), e.g., low power(LP) RAN node 712.

Any of the RAN nodes 711 and 712 can terminate the air interfaceprotocol and can be the first point of contact for the UEs 701 and 702.In some embodiments, any of the RAN nodes 711 and 712 can fulfillvarious logical functions for the RAN 710 including, but not limited to,radio network controller (RNC) functions such as radio bearermanagement, uplink and downlink dynamic radio resource management anddata packet scheduling, and mobility management.

In accordance with some embodiments, the UEs 701 and 702 can beconfigured to communicate using Orthogonal Frequency-DivisionMultiplexing (OFDM) communication signals with each other or with any ofthe RAN nodes 711 and 712 over a multicarrier communication channel inaccordance various communication techniques, such as, but not limitedto, an Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiple Access (OFDMA)communication technique (e.g., for downlink communications) or a SingleCarrier Frequency Division Multiple Access (SC-FDMA) communicationtechnique (e.g., for uplink and ProSe or sidelink communications),although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect.The OFDM signals can comprise a plurality of orthogonal subcarriers.

In some embodiments, a downlink resource grid can be used for downlinktransmissions from any of the RAN nodes 711 and 712 to the UEs 701 and702, while uplink transmissions can utilize similar techniques. The gridcan be a time-frequency grid, called a resource grid or time-frequencyresource grid, which is the physical resource in the downlink in eachslot. Such a time-frequency plane representation is a common practicefor OFDM systems, which makes it intuitive for radio resourceallocation. Each column and each row of the resource grid corresponds toone OFDM symbol and one OFDM subcarrier, respectively. The duration ofthe resource grid in the time domain corresponds to one slot in a radioframe. The smallest time-frequency unit in a resource grid is denoted asa resource element. Each resource grid comprises a number of resourceblocks, which describe the mapping of certain physical channels toresource elements. Each resource block comprises a collection ofresource elements; in the frequency domain, this may represent thesmallest quantity of resources that currently can be allocated. Thereare several different physical downlink channels that are conveyed usingsuch resource blocks.

The physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) may carry user data andhigher-layer signaling to the UEs 701 and 702. The physical downlinkcontrol channel (PDCCH) may carry information about the transport formatand resource allocations related to the PDSCH channel, among otherthings. It may also inform the UEs 701 and 702 about the transportformat, resource allocation, and H-ARQ (Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request)information related to the uplink shared channel. Typically, downlinkscheduling (assigning control and shared channel resource blocks to theUE 702 within a cell) may be performed at any of the RAN nodes 711 and712 based on channel quality information fed back from any of the UEs701 and 702. The downlink resource assignment information may be sent onthe PDCCH used for (e.g., assigned to) each of the UEs 701 and 702.

The PDCCH may use control channel elements (CCEs) to convey the controlinformation. Before being mapped to resource elements, the PDCCHcomplex-valued symbols may first be organized into quadruplets, whichmay then be permuted using a sub-block interleaver for rate matching.Each PDCCH may be transmitted using one or more of these CCEs, whereeach CCE may correspond to nine sets of four physical resource elementsknown as resource element groups (REGs). Four Quadrature Phase ShiftKeying (QPSK) symbols may be mapped to each REG. The PDCCH can betransmitted using one or more CCEs, depending on the size of thedownlink control information (DCI) and the channel condition. There canbe four or more different PDCCH formats defined in LTE with differentnumbers of CCEs (e.g., aggregation level, L=1, 2, 4, or 8).

Some embodiments may use concepts for resource allocation for controlchannel information that are an extension of the above-describedconcepts. For example, some embodiments may utilize an enhanced physicaldownlink control channel (EPDCCH) that uses PDSCH resources for controlinformation transmission. The EPDCCH may be transmitted using one ormore enhanced the control channel elements (ECCEs). Similar to above,each ECCE may correspond to nine sets of four physical resource elementsknown as an enhanced resource element groups (EREGs). An ECCE may haveother numbers of EREGs in some situations.

The RAN 710 is shown to be communicatively coupled to a core network(CN) 720—via an S1 interface 713. In embodiments, the CN 720 may be anevolved packet core (EPC) network, a NextGen Packet Core (NPC) network,or some other type of CN. In this embodiment the S1 interface 713 issplit into two parts: the S1-U interface 714, which carries traffic databetween the RAN nodes 711 and 712 and the serving gateway (S-GW) 722,and the S1-mobility management entity (MME) interface 715, which is asignaling interface between the RAN nodes 711 and 712 and MMEs 721.

In this embodiment, the CN 720 comprises the MMEs 721, the S-GW 722, thePacket Data Network (PDN) Gateway (P-GW) 723, and a home subscriberserver (HSS) 724. The MMEs 721 may be similar in function to the controlplane of legacy Serving General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) SupportNodes (SGSN). The MMEs 721 may manage mobility aspects in access such asgateway selection and tracking area list management. The HSS 724 maycomprise a database for network users, including subscription-relatedinformation to support the network entities' handling of communicationsessions. The CN 720 may comprise one or several HSSs 724, depending onthe number of mobile subscribers, on the capacity of the equipment, onthe organization of the network, etc. For example, the HSS 724 canprovide support for routing/roaming, authentication, authorization,naming/addressing resolution, location dependencies, etc.

The S-GW 722 may terminate the S1 interface 713 towards the RAN 710, androutes data packets between the RAN 710 and the CN 720. In addition, theS-GW 722 may be a local mobility anchor point for inter-RAN nodehandovers and also may provide an anchor for inter-3GPP mobility. Otherresponsibilities may include lawful intercept, charging, and some policyenforcement.

The P-GW 723 may terminate a SGi interface toward a PDN. The P-GW 723may route data packets between the EPC network 723 and external networkssuch as a network including the application server 730 (alternativelyreferred to as application function (AF)) via an Internet Protocol (IP)interface 725. Generally, the application server 730 may be an elementoffering applications that use IP bearer resources with the core network(e.g., UMTS Packet Services (PS) domain, LTE PS data services, etc.). Inthis embodiment, the P-GW 723 is shown to be communicatively coupled toan application server 730 via an IP communications interface 725. Theapplication server 730 can also be configured to support one or morecommunication services (e.g., Voice-over-Internet Protocol (VoIP)sessions, PTT sessions, group communication sessions, social networkingservices, etc.) for the UEs 701 and 702 via the CN 720.

The P-GW 723 may further be a node for policy enforcement and chargingdata collection. Policy and Charging Enforcement Function (PCRF) 726 isthe policy and charging control element of the CN 720. In a non-roamingscenario, there may be a single PCRF in the Home Public Land MobileNetwork (HPLMN) associated with a UE's Internet Protocol ConnectivityAccess Network (IP-CAN) session. In a roaming scenario with localbreakout of traffic, there may be two PCRFs associated with a UE'sIP-CAN session: a Home PCRF (H-PCRF) within a HPLMN and a Visited PCRF(V-PCRF) within a Visited Public Land Mobile Network (VPLMN). The PCRF726 may be communicatively coupled to the application server 730 via theP-GW 723. The application server 730 may signal the PCRF 726 to indicatea new service flow and select the appropriate Quality of Service (QoS)and charging parameters. The PCRF 726 may provision this rule into aPolicy and Charging Enforcement Function (PCEF) (not shown) with theappropriate traffic flow template (TFT) and QoS class of identifier(QCI), which commences the QoS and charging as specified by theapplication server 730.

FIG. 8 illustrates example components of a device 800 in accordance withsome embodiments. In some embodiments, the device 800 may includeapplication circuitry 802, baseband circuitry 804, Radio Frequency (RF)circuitry 806, front-end module (FEM) circuitry 808, one or moreantennas 810, and power management circuitry (PMC) 812 coupled togetherat least as shown. The components of the illustrated device 800 may beincluded in a UE or a RAN node. In some embodiments, the device 800 mayinclude less elements (e.g., a RAN node may not utilize applicationcircuitry 802, and instead include a processor/controller to process IPdata received from an EPC). In some embodiments, the device 800 mayinclude additional elements such as, for example, memory/storage,display, camera, sensor, or input/output (I/O) interface. In otherembodiments, the components described below may be included in more thanone device (e.g., said circuitries may be separately included in morethan one device for Cloud-RAN (C-RAN) implementations).

The application circuitry 802 may include one or more applicationprocessors. For example, the application circuitry 802 may includecircuitry such as, but not limited to, one or more single-core ormulti-core processors. The processor(s) may include any combination ofgeneral-purpose processors and dedicated processors (e.g., graphicsprocessors, application processors, etc.). The processors may be coupledwith or may include memory/storage and may be configured to executeinstructions stored in the memory/storage to enable various applicationsor operating systems to run on the device 800. In some embodiments,processors of application circuitry 802 may process IP data packetsreceived from an EPC.

The baseband circuitry 804 may include circuitry such as, but notlimited to, one or more single-core or multi-core processors. Thebaseband circuitry 804 may include one or more baseband processors orcontrol logic to process baseband signals received from a receive signalpath of the RF circuitry 806 and to generate baseband signals for atransmit signal path of the RF circuitry 806. Baseband processingcircuitry 804 may interface with the application circuitry 802 forgeneration and processing of the baseband signals and for controllingoperations of the RF circuitry 806. For example, in some embodiments,the baseband circuitry 804 may include a third generation (3G) basebandprocessor 804 a, a fourth generation (4G) baseband processor 804 b, afifth generation (5G) baseband processor 804 c, or other basebandprocessor(s) 804 d for other existing generations, generations indevelopment or to be developed in the future (e.g., second generation(2G), sixth generation (6G), etc.). The baseband circuitry 804 (e.g.,one or more of baseband processors 804 a-d) may handle various radiocontrol functions that enable communication with one or more radionetworks via the RF circuitry 806. In other embodiments, some or all ofthe functionality of baseband processors 804 a-d may be included inmodules stored in the memory 804 g and executed via a Central ProcessingUnit (CPU) 804 e. The radio control functions may include, but are notlimited to, signal modulation/demodulation, encoding/decoding, radiofrequency shifting, etc. In some embodiments, modulation/demodulationcircuitry of the baseband circuitry 804 may include Fast-FourierTransform (FFT), precoding, or constellation mapping/demappingfunctionality. In some embodiments, encoding/decoding circuitry of thebaseband circuitry 804 may include convolution, tail-biting convolution,turbo, Viterbi, or Low Density Parity Check (LDPC) encoder/decoderfunctionality. Embodiments of modulation/demodulation andencoder/decoder functionality are not limited to these examples and mayinclude other suitable functionality in other embodiments.

In some embodiments, the baseband circuitry 804 may include one or moreaudio digital signal processor(s) (DSP) 804 f. The audio DSP(s) 804 fmay be include elements for compression/decompression and echocancellation and may include other suitable processing elements in otherembodiments. Components of the baseband circuitry may be suitablycombined in a single chip, a single chipset, or disposed on a samecircuit board in some embodiments. In some embodiments, some or all ofthe constituent components of the baseband circuitry 804 and theapplication circuitry 802 may be implemented together such as, forexample, on a system on a chip (SOC).

In some embodiments, the baseband circuitry 804 may provide forcommunication compatible with one or more radio technologies. Forexample, in some embodiments, the baseband circuitry 804 may supportcommunication with an evolved universal terrestrial radio access network(EUTRAN) or other wireless metropolitan area networks (WMAN), a wirelesslocal area network (WLAN), a wireless personal area network (WPAN).Embodiments in which the baseband circuitry 804 is configured to supportradio communications of more than one wireless protocol may be referredto as multi-mode baseband circuitry.

RF circuitry 806 may enable communication with wireless networks usingmodulated electromagnetic radiation through a non-solid medium. Invarious embodiments, the RF circuitry 806 may include switches, filters,amplifiers, etc. to facilitate the communication with the wirelessnetwork. RF circuitry 806 may include a receive signal path which mayinclude circuitry to down-convert RF signals received from the FEMcircuitry 808 and provide baseband signals to the baseband circuitry804. RF circuitry 806 may also include a transmit signal path which mayinclude circuitry to up-convert baseband signals provided by thebaseband circuitry 804 and provide RF output signals to the FEMcircuitry 808 for transmission.

In some embodiments, the receive signal path of the RF circuitry 806 mayinclude mixer circuitry 806 a, amplifier circuitry 806 b and filtercircuitry 806 c. In some embodiments, the transmit signal path of the RFcircuitry 806 may include filter circuitry 806 c and mixer circuitry 806a. RF circuitry 806 may also include synthesizer circuitry 806 d forsynthesizing a frequency for use by the mixer circuitry 806 a of thereceive signal path and the transmit signal path. In some embodiments,the mixer circuitry 806 a of the receive signal path may be configuredto down-convert RF signals received from the FEM circuitry 808 based onthe synthesized frequency provided by synthesizer circuitry 806 d. Theamplifier circuitry 806 b may be configured to amplify thedown-converted signals and the filter circuitry 806 c may be a low-passfilter (LPF) or band-pass filter (BPF) configured to remove unwantedsignals from the down-converted signals to generate output basebandsignals. Output baseband signals may be provided to the basebandcircuitry 804 for further processing. In some embodiments, the outputbaseband signals may be zero-frequency baseband signals. In someembodiments, mixer circuitry 806 a of the receive signal path maycomprise passive mixers, although the scope of the embodiments is notlimited in this respect.

In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry 806 a of the transmit signalpath may be configured to up-convert input baseband signals based on thesynthesized frequency provided by the synthesizer circuitry 806 d togenerate RF output signals for the FEM circuitry 808. The basebandsignals may be provided by the baseband circuitry 804 and may befiltered by filter circuitry 806 c.

In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry 806 a of the receive signalpath and the mixer circuitry 806 a of the transmit signal path mayinclude two or more mixers and may be arranged for quadraturedownconversion and upconversion, respectively. In some embodiments, themixer circuitry 806 a of the receive signal path and the mixer circuitry806 a of the transmit signal path may include two or more mixers and maybe arranged for image rejection (e.g., Hartley image rejection). In someembodiments, the mixer circuitry 806 a of the receive signal path andthe mixer circuitry 806 a may be arranged for direct downconversion anddirect upconversion, respectively. In some embodiments, the mixercircuitry 806 a of the receive signal path and the mixer circuitry 806 aof the transmit signal path may be configured for super-heterodyneoperation.

In some embodiments, the output baseband signals and the input basebandsignals may be analog baseband signals, although the scope of theembodiments is not limited in this respect. In some alternateembodiments, the output baseband signals and the input baseband signalsmay be digital baseband signals. In these alternate embodiments, the RFcircuitry 806 may include analog-to-digital converter (ADC) anddigital-to-analog converter (DAC) circuitry and the baseband circuitry804 may include a digital baseband interface to communicate with the RFcircuitry 806.

In some dual-mode embodiments, a separate radio IC circuitry may beprovided for processing signals for each spectrum, although the scope ofthe embodiments is not limited in this respect.

In some embodiments, the synthesizer circuitry 806 d may be afractional-N synthesizer or a fractional N/N+1 synthesizer, although thescope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect as other typesof frequency synthesizers may be suitable. For example, synthesizercircuitry 806 d may be a delta-sigma synthesizer, a frequencymultiplier, or a synthesizer comprising a phase-locked loop with afrequency divider.

The synthesizer circuitry 806 d may be configured to synthesize anoutput frequency for use by the mixer circuitry 806 a of the RFcircuitry 806 based on a frequency input and a divider control input. Insome embodiments, the synthesizer circuitry 806 d may be a fractionalN/N+1 synthesizer.

In some embodiments, frequency input may be provided by a voltagecontrolled oscillator (VCO). Divider control input may be provided byeither the baseband circuitry 804 or the applications processor 802depending on the desired output frequency. In some embodiments, adivider control input (e.g., N) may be determined from a look-up tablebased on a channel indicated by the applications processor 802.

Synthesizer circuitry 806 d of the RF circuitry 806 may include adivider, a delay-locked loop (DLL), a multiplexer and a phaseaccumulator. In some embodiments, the divider may be a dual modulusdivider (DMD) and the phase accumulator may be a digital phaseaccumulator (DPA). In some embodiments, the DMD may be configured todivide the input signal by either N or N+1 (e.g., based on a carry out)to provide a fractional division ratio. In some example embodiments, theDLL may include a set of cascaded, tunable, delay elements, a phasedetector, a charge pump and a D-type flip-flop. In these embodiments,the delay elements may be configured to break a VCO period up into Ndequal packets of phase, where Nd is the number of delay elements in thedelay line. In this way, the DLL provides negative feedback to helpensure that the total delay through the delay line is one VCO cycle.

In some embodiments, synthesizer circuitry 806 d may be configured togenerate a carrier frequency as the output frequency, while in otherembodiments, the output frequency may be a multiple of the carrierfrequency (e.g., twice the carrier frequency, four times the carrierfrequency) and used in conjunction with quadrature generator and dividercircuitry to generate multiple signals at the carrier frequency withmultiple different phases with respect to each other. In someembodiments, the output frequency may be a LO frequency (fLO). In someembodiments, the RF circuitry 806 may include an IQ/polar converter.

FEM circuitry 808 may include a receive signal path which may includecircuitry configured to operate on RF signals received from one or moreantennas 810, amplify the received signals and provide the amplifiedversions of the received signals to the RF circuitry 806 for furtherprocessing. FEM circuitry 808 may also include a transmit signal pathwhich may include circuitry configured to amplify signals fortransmission provided by the RF circuitry 806 for transmission by one ormore of the one or more antennas 810. In various embodiments, theamplification through the transmit or receive signal paths may be donesolely in the RF circuitry 806, solely in the FEM 808, or in both the RFcircuitry 806 and the FEM 808.

In some embodiments, the FEM circuitry 808 may include a TX/RX switch toswitch between transmit mode and receive mode operation. The FEMcircuitry may include a receive signal path and a transmit signal path.The receive signal path of the FEM circuitry may include an LNA toamplify received RF signals and provide the amplified received RFsignals as an output (e.g., to the RF circuitry 806). The transmitsignal path of the FEM circuitry 808 may include a power amplifier (PA)to amplify input RF signals (e.g., provided by RF circuitry 806), andone or more filters to generate RF signals for subsequent transmission(e.g., by one or more of the one or more antennas 810).

In some embodiments, the PMC 812 may manage power provided to thebaseband circuitry 804. In particular, the PMC 812 may controlpower-source selection, voltage scaling, battery charging, or DC-to-DCconversion. The PMC 812 may often be included when the device 800 iscapable of being powered by a battery, for example, when the device isincluded in a UE. The PMC 812 may increase the power conversionefficiency while providing desirable implementation size and heatdissipation characteristics.

While FIG. 8 shows the PMC 812 coupled only with the baseband circuitry804. However, in other embodiments, the PMC 812 may be additionally oralternatively coupled with, and perform similar power managementoperations for, other components such as, but not limited to,application circuitry 802, RF circuitry 806, or FEM 808.

In some embodiments, the PMC 812 may control, or otherwise be part of,various power saving mechanisms of the device 800. For example, if thedevice 800 is in an RRC_Connected state, where it is still connected tothe RAN node as it expects to receive traffic shortly, then it may entera state known as Discontinuous Reception Mode (DRX) after a period ofinactivity. During this state, the device 800 may power down for briefintervals of time and thus save power.

If there is no data traffic activity for an extended period of time,then the device 800 may transition off to an RRC_Idle state, where itdisconnects from the network and does not perform operations such aschannel quality feedback, handover, etc. The device 800 goes into a verylow power state and it performs paging where again it periodically wakesup to listen to the network and then powers down again. The device 800may not receive data in this state, in order to receive data, it cantransition back to RRC_Connected state.

An additional power saving mode may allow a device to be unavailable tothe network for periods longer than a paging interval (ranging fromseconds to a few hours). During this time, the device can be unreachableto the network and may power down completely. Any data sent during thistime incurs a large delay and it is assumed the delay is acceptable.

Processors of the application circuitry 802 and processors of thebaseband circuitry 804 may be used to execute elements of one or moreinstances of a protocol stack. For example, processors of the basebandcircuitry 804, alone or in combination, may be used execute Layer 3,Layer 2, or Layer 1 functionality, while processors of the applicationcircuitry 804 may utilize data (e.g., packet data) received from theselayers and further execute Layer 4 functionality (e.g., transmissioncommunication protocol (TCP) and user datagram protocol (UDP) layers).As referred to herein, Layer 3 may comprise a radio resource control(RRC) layer, described in further detail below. As referred to herein,Layer 2 may comprise a medium access control (MAC) layer, a radio linkcontrol (RLC) layer, and a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP)layer, described in further detail below. As referred to herein, Layer 1may comprise a physical (PHY) layer of a UE/RAN node, described infurther detail below.

FIG. 9 illustrates example interfaces of baseband circuitry inaccordance with some embodiments. As discussed above, the basebandcircuitry 804 of FIG. 8 may comprise processors 804 a-804 e and a memory804 g utilized by said processors. Each of the processors 804 a-804 emay include a memory interface, 904 a-904 e, respectively, tosend/receive data to/from the memory 804 g.

The baseband circuitry 804 may further include one or more interfaces tocommunicatively couple to other circuitries/devices, such as a memoryinterface 912 (e.g., an interface to send/receive data to/from memoryexternal to the baseband circuitry 804), an application circuitryinterface 914 (e.g., an interface to send/receive data to/from theapplication circuitry 802 of FIG. 8), an RF circuitry interface 916(e.g., an interface to send/receive data to/from RF circuitry 806 ofFIG. 8), a wireless hardware connectivity interface 918 (e.g., aninterface to send/receive data to/from Near Field Communication (NFC)components, Bluetooth® components (e.g., Bluetooth® Low Energy), Wi-Fi®components, and other communication components), and a power managementinterface 920 (e.g., an interface to send/receive power or controlsignals to/from the PMC 812.

FIG. 10 provides an example illustration of the wireless device, such asa user equipment (UE), a mobile station (MS), a mobile wireless device,a mobile communication device, a tablet, a handset, or other type ofwireless device. The wireless device can include one or more antennasconfigured to communicate with a node, macro node, low power node (LPN),or, transmission station, such as a base station (BS), an evolved Node B(eNB), a baseband processing unit (BBU), a remote radio head (RRH), aremote radio equipment (RRE), a relay station (RS), a radio equipment(RE), or other type of wireless wide area network (WWAN) access point.The wireless device can be configured to communicate using at least onewireless communication standard such as, but not limited to, 3GPP LTE,WiMAX, High Speed Packet Access (HSPA), Bluetooth, and WiFi. Thewireless device can communicate using separate antennas for eachwireless communication standard or shared antennas for multiple wirelesscommunication standards. The wireless device can communicate in awireless local area network (WLAN), a wireless personal area network(WPAN), and/or a WWAN. The wireless device can also comprise a wirelessmodem. The wireless modem can comprise, for example, a wireless radiotransceiver and baseband circuitry (e.g., a baseband processor). Thewireless modem can, in one example, modulate signals that the wirelessdevice transmits via the one or more antennas and demodulate signalsthat the wireless device receives via the one or more antennas.

FIG. 10 also provides an illustration of a microphone and one or morespeakers that can be used for audio input and output from the wirelessdevice. The display screen can be a liquid crystal display (LCD) screen,or other type of display screen such as an organic light emitting diode(OLED) display. The display screen can be configured as a touch screen.The touch screen can use capacitive, resistive, or another type of touchscreen technology. An application processor and a graphics processor canbe coupled to internal memory to provide processing and displaycapabilities. A non-volatile memory port can also be used to providedata input/output options to a user. The non-volatile memory port canalso be used to expand the memory capabilities of the wireless device. Akeyboard can be integrated with the wireless device or wirelesslyconnected to the wireless device to provide additional user input. Avirtual keyboard can also be provided using the touch screen.

Examples

The following examples pertain to specific technology embodiments andpoint out specific features, elements, or actions that can be used orotherwise combined in achieving such embodiments.

Example 1 includes an apparatus of a user equipment (UE) operable toperform measurements for measurement objects (MOs) in a New Radio (NR)system, the UE comprising: one or more processors configured to:identify, at the UE, an MO configured by an NR network in the NR system,wherein the MO is associated with a synchronization signal block (SSB)of a frequency; measure, at the UE, the MO associated with the SSB forthe frequency; and encode, at the UE, a measurement report fortransmission to the NR network, wherein the measurement report includesone or more measurements associated with the MO; and a memory interfaceconfigured to send to a memory a configuration of the MO.

Example 2 includes the apparatus of Example 1, further comprising atransceiver configured to receive the configuration of the MO from theNR network.

Example 3 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1 to 2, wherein theone or more processors are configured to identify the MO from multipleMOs that are configured by the NR network in the NR system, wherein themultiple MOs are associated with multiple SSBs on separate bandwidthparts (BWPs) of the frequency.

Example 4 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1 to 3, wherein theone or more processors are configured to measure the MO associated withan active BWP of the separate BWPs of the frequency.

Example 5 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1 to 4, wherein theone or more processors are configured to select a BWP of the separateBWPs on the frequency to measure when no MO included in the multiple MOsis associated with an active BWP.

Example 6 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1 to 5, wherein theSSB is a cell defining SSB.

Example 7 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1 to 6, wherein thefrequency is a serving frequency or a non-serving frequency.

Example 8 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1 to 6, wherein theMO is a single MO that is configured for one frequency.

Example 9 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1 to 8, wherein theSSB is used as a timing reference by the UE for a channel stateinformation reference signal (CSI-RS).

Example 10 includes an apparatus of a New Radio (NR) network operable todecode measurements for measurement objects (MOs) received from a userequipment (UE), the NR network comprising: one or more processorsconfigured to: configure, at the NR network, an MO for the UE, whereinthe MO is associated with a synchronization signal block (SSB) of afrequency; and decode, at the NR network, a measurement report receivedfrom the UE, wherein the measurement report includes one or moremeasurements for the MO associated with the SSB for the frequency; and amemory interface configured to send to a memory the measurement report.

Example 11 includes the apparatus of Example 10, further comprising atransceiver configured to: transmit a configuration of the MO to the UE;and receive the measurement report from the UE.

Example 12 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 10 to 11, whereinthe MO is one of multiple MOs that are configured by the NR network,wherein the multiple MOs are associated with multiple SSBs on separatebandwidth parts (BWPs) of the frequency.

Example 13 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 10 to 12, whereinthe MO associated with an active BWP of the separate BWPs of thefrequency is measured at the UE.

Example 14 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 10 to 13, wherein aBWP of the separate BWPs on the frequency is selected to measure at theUE when no MO included in the multiple MOs is associated with an activeBWP.

Example 15 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 10 to 14, whereinthe SSB is a cell defining SSB.

Example 16 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 10 to 15, whereinthe frequency is a serving frequency or a non-serving frequency.

Example 17 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 10 to 16, whereinthe MO is a single MO that is configured for one frequency.

Example 18 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 10 to 17, whereinthe SSB is used as a timing reference by the UE for a channel stateinformation reference signal (CSI-RS).

Example 19 includes at least one non-transitory machine readable storagemedium having instructions embodied thereon for performing measurementsfor measurement objects (MOs) in a New Radio (NR) system, theinstructions when executed by one or more processors at a user equipment(UE) perform the following: identifying, at the UE, an MO configured byan NR network in the NR system, wherein the MO is associated with asynchronization signal block (SSB) of a frequency; measuring, at the UE,the MO associated with the SSB for the frequency; and encoding, at theUE, a measurement report for transmission to the NR network, wherein themeasurement report includes one or more measurements associated with theMO.

Example 20 includes the at least one non-transitory machine readablestorage medium of Example 19, further comprising instructions whenexecuted perform the following: identifying the MO from multiple MOsthat are configured by the NR network in the NR system, wherein themultiple MOs are associated with multiple SSBs on separate bandwidthparts (BWPs) of the frequency.

Example 21 includes the at least one non-transitory machine readablestorage medium of any of Examples 19 to 20, further comprisinginstructions when executed perform the following: measuring the MOassociated with an active BWP of the separate BWPs of the frequency.

Example 22 includes the at least one non-transitory machine readablestorage medium of any of Examples 19 to 21, further comprisinginstructions when executed perform the following: selecting a BWP of theseparate BWPs on the frequency to measure when no MO included in themultiple MOs is associated with an active BWP.

Example 23 includes the at least one non-transitory machine readablestorage medium of any of Examples 19 to 22, wherein the frequency is aserving frequency or a non-serving frequency.

Example 24 includes the at least one non-transitory machine readablestorage medium of any of Examples 19 to 23, wherein the MO is a singleMO that is configured for one frequency.

Example 25 includes an apparatus of a user equipment (UE) operable toencode a measurement report for transmission to a New Radio (NR) basestation, the UE comprising: one or more processors configured to:determine, at the UE, one or more NR cells that have K beams that areabove a first defined threshold, wherein K is a positive integer;determine, at the UE, M NR cells that have an increased number of beamsmeasured above a second defined threshold, wherein M is a positiveinteger; and encode, at the UE, a measurement report for transmission tothe NR base station that includes measurements for the one or more NRcells that have K beams that are above the first defined threshold orthe M NR cells that have the increased number of beams measured abovethe second defined threshold, a memory interface configured to retrievefrom a memory the measurement report.

Example 26 includes the apparatus of Example 25, wherein: one or more ofK and the first defined threshold are configured by an NR network; andone or more of M and the second defined threshold are configured by theNR network.

Example 27 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 25 to 26, wherein:one or more of K and the first defined threshold are fixed values; andone or more of M and the second defined threshold are fixed values.

Example 28 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 25 to 27, whereinthe first defined threshold and the second defined threshold are basedon one of: a reference signal receive power (RSRP), a reference signalreceived quality (RSRQ) and/or a signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio(SINR).

Various techniques, or certain aspects or portions thereof, may take theform of program code (i.e., instructions) embodied in tangible media,such as floppy diskettes, compact disc-read-only memory (CD-ROMs), harddrives, non-transitory computer readable storage medium, or any othermachine-readable storage medium wherein, when the program code is loadedinto and executed by a machine, such as a computer, the machine becomesan apparatus for practicing the various techniques. In the case ofprogram code execution on programmable computers, the computing devicemay include a processor, a storage medium readable by the processor(including volatile and non-volatile memory and/or storage elements), atleast one input device, and at least one output device. The volatile andnon-volatile memory and/or storage elements may be a random-accessmemory (RAM), erasable programmable read only memory (EPROM), flashdrive, optical drive, magnetic hard drive, solid state drive, or othermedium for storing electronic data. The node and wireless device mayalso include a transceiver module (i.e., transceiver), a counter module(i.e., counter), a processing module (i.e., processor), and/or a clockmodule (i.e., clock) or timer module (i.e., timer). In one example,selected components of the transceiver module can be located in a cloudradio access network (C-RAN). One or more programs that may implement orutilize the various techniques described herein may use an applicationprogramming interface (API), reusable controls, and the like. Suchprograms may be implemented in a high level procedural or objectoriented programming language to communicate with a computer system.However, the program(s) may be implemented in assembly or machinelanguage, if desired. In any case, the language may be a compiled orinterpreted language, and combined with hardware implementations.

As used herein, the term “circuitry” may refer to, be part of, orinclude an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), an electroniccircuit, a processor (shared, dedicated, or group), and/or memory(shared, dedicated, or group) that execute one or more software orfirmware programs, a combinational logic circuit, and/or other suitablehardware components that provide the described functionality. In someembodiments, the circuitry may be implemented in, or functionsassociated with the circuitry may be implemented by, one or moresoftware or firmware modules. In some embodiments, circuitry may includelogic, at least partially operable in hardware.

It should be understood that many of the functional units described inthis specification have been labeled as modules, in order to moreparticularly emphasize their implementation independence. For example, amodule may be implemented as a hardware circuit comprising customvery-large-scale integration (VLSI) circuits or gate arrays,off-the-shelf semiconductors such as logic chips, transistors, or otherdiscrete components. A module may also be implemented in programmablehardware devices such as field programmable gate arrays, programmablearray logic, programmable logic devices or the like.

Modules may also be implemented in software for execution by varioustypes of processors. An identified module of executable code may, forinstance, comprise one or more physical or logical blocks of computerinstructions, which may, for instance, be organized as an object,procedure, or function. Nevertheless, the executables of an identifiedmodule may not be physically located together, but may comprisedisparate instructions stored in different locations which, when joinedlogically together, comprise the module and achieve the stated purposefor the module.

Indeed, a module of executable code may be a single instruction, or manyinstructions, and may even be distributed over several different codesegments, among different programs, and across several memory devices.Similarly, operational data may be identified and illustrated hereinwithin modules, and may be embodied in any suitable form and organizedwithin any suitable type of data structure. The operational data may becollected as a single data set, or may be distributed over differentlocations including over different storage devices, and may exist, atleast partially, merely as electronic signals on a system or network.The modules may be passive or active, including agents operable toperform desired functions.

Reference throughout this specification to “an example” or “exemplary”means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic describedin connection with the example is included in at least one embodiment ofthe present technology. Thus, appearances of the phrases “in an example”or the word “exemplary” in various places throughout this specificationare not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment.

As used herein, a plurality of items, structural elements, compositionalelements, and/or materials may be presented in a common list forconvenience. However, these lists should be construed as though eachmember of the list is individually identified as a separate and uniquemember. Thus, no individual member of such list should be construed as ade facto equivalent of any other member of the same list solely based ontheir presentation in a common group without indications to thecontrary. In addition, various embodiments and example of the presenttechnology may be referred to herein along with alternatives for thevarious components thereof. It is understood that such embodiments,examples, and alternatives are not to be construed as defactoequivalents of one another, but are to be considered as separate andautonomous representations of the present technology.

Furthermore, the described features, structures, or characteristics maybe combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments. In thefollowing description, numerous specific details are provided, such asexamples of layouts, distances, network examples, etc., to provide athorough understanding of embodiments of the technology. One skilled inthe relevant art will recognize, however, that the technology can bepracticed without one or more of the specific details, or with othermethods, components, layouts, etc. In other instances, well-knownstructures, materials, or operations are not shown or described indetail to avoid obscuring aspects of the technology.

While the forgoing examples are illustrative of the principles of thepresent technology in one or more particular applications, it will beapparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that numerousmodifications in form, usage and details of implementation can be madewithout the exercise of inventive faculty, and without departing fromthe principles and concepts of the technology.

What is claimed is: 1-22. (canceled)
 23. An apparatus of a userequipment (UE) operable to perform measurements for measurement objects(MOs) in a New Radio (NR) network, the apparatus comprising: one or moreprocessors configured to: identify, at the UE, a measurementconfiguration for multiple MOs configured by the NR network, whereineach MO in the multiple MOs is associated with a synchronization signalblock (SSB) frequency, and the multiple MOs include at most one MO witha same SSB frequency; measure, at the UE, the multiple MOs configured bythe NR network; and encode, at the UE, a measurement report fortransmission to the NR network, wherein the measurement report includesone or more measurements associated with the multiple MOs; and a memoryinterface configured to send to a memory the measurement configuration.24. The apparatus of claim 23, further comprising a transceiverconfigured to receive the measurement configuration from the NR network.25. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein each MO in the multiple MOsconfigures a subcarrier spacing.
 26. The apparatus of claim 23, whereinthe one or more processors are configured to measure the multiple MOs inaccordance with a measurement gap.
 27. The apparatus of claim 23,wherein the one or more processors are configured to measure themultiple MOs on an NR serving cell in the NR network.
 28. An apparatusof a New Radio (NR) network operable to decode measurements formeasurement objects (MOs) received from a user equipment (UE), theapparatus comprising: one or more processors configured to: configure,at the NR network, an MO for the UE, wherein the MO is associated with asynchronization signal block (SSB) of a frequency; and decode, at the NRnetwork, a measurement report received from the UE, wherein themeasurement report includes one or more measurements for the MOassociated with the SSB for the frequency; and a memory interfaceconfigured to send to a memory the measurement report.
 29. The apparatusof claim 28, further comprising a transceiver configured to: transmit aconfiguration of the MO to the UE; and receive the measurement reportfrom the UE.
 30. The apparatus of claim 28, wherein the MO is one ofmultiple MOs that are configured by the NR network, wherein the multipleMOs are associated with multiple SSBs on separate bandwidth parts (BWPs)of the frequency.
 31. The apparatus of claim 28, wherein the MOassociated with an active BWP of the separate BWPs of the frequency ismeasured at the UE.
 32. The apparatus of claim 31, wherein a BWP of theseparate BWPs on the frequency is selected to measure at the UE when noMO included in the multiple MOs is associated with an active BWP. 33.The apparatus of claim 28, wherein the SSB is a cell defining SSB. 34.The apparatus of claim 28, wherein the frequency is a serving frequencyor a non-serving frequency.
 35. The apparatus of claim 28, wherein theMO is a single MO that is configured for one frequency.
 36. Theapparatus of claim 28, wherein the SSB is used as a timing reference bythe UE for a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS).
 37. Atleast one non-transitory machine readable storage medium havinginstructions embodied thereon for performing measurements formeasurement objects (MOs) in a New Radio (NR) system, the instructionswhen executed by one or more processors at a user equipment (UE) performthe following: identifying, at the UE, an MO configured by an NR networkin the NR system, wherein the MO is associated with a synchronizationsignal block (SSB) of a frequency; measuring, at the UE, the MOassociated with the SSB for the frequency; and encoding, at the UE, ameasurement report for transmission to the NR network, wherein themeasurement report includes one or more measurements associated with theMO.
 38. The at least one non-transitory machine readable storage mediumof claim 37, further comprising instructions when executed perform thefollowing: identifying the MO from multiple MOs that are configured bythe NR network in the NR system, wherein the multiple MOs are associatedwith multiple SSBs on separate bandwidth parts (BWPs) of the frequency.39. The at least one non-transitory machine readable storage medium ofclaim 38, further comprising instructions when executed perform thefollowing: measuring the MO associated with an active BWP of theseparate BWPs of the frequency.
 40. The at least one non-transitorymachine readable storage medium of claim 38, further comprisinginstructions when executed perform the following: selecting a BWP of theseparate BWPs on the frequency to measure when no MO included in themultiple MOs is associated with an active BWP.
 41. The at least onenon-transitory machine readable storage medium of claim 37, wherein theSSB is a cell defining SSB.
 42. The at least one non-transitory machinereadable storage medium of claim 37, wherein the frequency is a servingfrequency or a non-serving frequency.
 43. The at least onenon-transitory machine readable storage medium of claim 37, wherein theMO is a single MO that is configured for one frequency.
 44. The at leastone non-transitory machine readable storage medium of claim 37, whereinthe SSB is used as a timing reference by the UE for a channel stateinformation reference signal (CSI-RS).